U.S. to deport man found not guilty of murder of woman with local ties

The family of a woman shot and killed in June 2015 on a San Francisco pier said they were shocked a jury on Thursday acquitted a Mexican national of murder in the death of 32-year-old Kathryn “Kate” Steinle.

>> Jury acquits illegal immigrant in San Francisco pier killing

Steinle’s slaying sparked a national immigration debate. President Trump, then a candidate, used her case to push for a Mexican border wall. Thursday night, Trump said it was a “disgraceful verdict” in the trial of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate. U.S. immigration authorities said they will take custody and deport Garcia Zarate once his case concludes.

Steinle’s mother, Liz Sullivan, is a 1964 graduate of Greenville High School in Darke County. Several of Sullivan’s classmates in 2015 spoke to this news organization. They agreed borders needed to be secured and criminal illegal immigrants kept out.

Steinle’s father told the San Francisco Chronical the family was saddened and shocked.

“Justice was rendered but not served,” Jim Steinle told the newspaper.

Credit: AP Photo/Eric Risberg

Credit: AP Photo/Eric Risberg

Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when Kate Steinle was fatally shot in the back while walking with her father on a pier in a popular tourist spot. He admitted shooting Steinle, but said it was an accident. The jury did convict him of illegal possession of a firearm as a felon, the Associated Press reported.

>> The Latest: Trump: ‘Disgraceful verdict’ in pier shooting

San Francisco’s “sanctuary city” policy limits local officials from cooperating with U.S. immigration authorities. Under the city law, the San Francisco’s sheriff’s department previously released Garcia Zarate from jail despite a federal immigration request to detain him for deportation, the AP reported.

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